Nurse Asthma Care Education (NACE)

NACE is a continuing education program that focuses on the nurses' role in the delivery of quality asthma care.  The majority of nurses who practice in a general health care setting encounter patients of all ages with asthma, yet many lack the skills to provide optimal clinical care.  NACE is designed to address the practice concerns and needs of nurses who provide care for patients with asthma.  Additionally,  the NACE program targets nurses who work in urban areas of the country where there is evidence of asthma education and care need along with shortages in the supply of registered nurses.  

The primary objective of NACE is to adapt and implement a continuing education model based on the proven Physician Asthma Care Education program. Interactive seminars addressing asthma care and management in existing health care systems in five communities around the United States with underserved populations are being provided.   Major aspects of the curriculum focus on: enhancing the clinical skills of nurses seeing patients with asthma, increasing their patient communication and counseling skills, enabling them to articulate educational messages encouraging patient self-management, enhancing nurses' competence and confidence as practitioners, enhancing interactions with other asthma health care providers, encouraging leadership in asthma control activities, increasing nurses' satisfaction with their own professional performance,  and expanding new skills from asthma to other chronic disease nursing situations. 

The initial 'Train-the Trainer' session included fifteen registered nurses from the five sites.  This initial session was conducted by staff from the National Respiratory Training Center and the Center for Managing Chronic Disease.  The "trained" nurses will then be able to conduct seminars at their home sites.  Over the course of the following three years, 525 nurses will have completed the NACE program. 

The program will employ a pre/post test evaluation, with a 6-month follow-up and secondary data from several sources.  Primary outcome measures will be changes in: nurse communication and counseling skills, asthma awareness, and changes in cultural competency.  Secondary measures include: nurses self-confidence and self-efficacy, increased interaction with other asthma care professionals, increase in exerting leadership, and increase in nurse professional performance satisfaction.

For more information, contact Molly Gong at mgong@umich.edu or Belinda Nelson at belindan@umich.edu.